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6 Sheets-Sheet 1 E. K. VIETOR PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DRYING TOBACCO LEAVES Filed April 18 a;

Sept. 29, 1925.

y f- Sum Sept. 29, 1925.

E. K. V IETOR PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DRYING TOBACCO LEAVES, ETC

, Filqd April 19, 1922 a sheets-Sheet s Sept. 29, 1925.

E. K. VIETOR PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR DRYING TbBAcco LEAVES, a'rc Filed April 18 922 v X T 7 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 granule;

Sept. 29, 1925.

I E. K. VIETOR PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR D RlING TOBACCO LB AVBS, ETC

6 Shasta-811981. 6

Filed April 1a,' 1922 v nuum' 713. V/e'far useful im rovements in the Patented Sept. 29, 1925.

UNITED STATES EH11; K. VIE'IOB, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

PROCESS AHD APFARATUS FOB DRYING TOBACCO LEAVES, ETC.

Application fled April 18', 1922. Serial No. 554,381.

To all whom it ma concern:

Be it known t at I, EMIL K. VIETOR, citizen of Germany, residing at Richmond, in the county of Chesterfield and State of Vir inia, have invented certain new and useful mprovements in Processes and Apparatus for Dr ing Tobacco Leaves, Etc. an I do hereby d a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention consists in certain new and rocess and ap Earatus or drying leaf tobacco strips in coping condition, preparatory to packing the same in hogsheads for shipment, or to working up into commercial form.

M improved process and apparatus are equa ly as well adapted to the drying of fruits, vegetables and other edibles, my principal object being to preserve the natural flavors, aroma and properties of the material treated which. are lost if the material is subject to an unnatural heat.

In describing my process, I shall, for illustrative purposes, set it forth as applied to tobacco, but it will be understood that I claim its use for drying not only tobacco, but other vegetable and edible matter.

In drying tobacco and similar products, at the present time, two methods are employed, one to air dry them, that is to rack the products in a room to which the air has access, and to allow such products to remain there until dry. This method, however, is very uncertain as regards the period of time necessary for thorough drying, which period may be from three to six months in duration accordin to the weather prevailing, as the amount 0 moisture in the air constitutes an important factor, in this old method of drymg.

Another method of drying the roducts in question, consists in passing t e same through a drying machine, or room where heat is maintained at from 150 to 250 F., but this method is very unsatisfactory, as such high'degree of heat deprives the products treated, of their natural flavor and socalled vitamines.

My improved process obviates the above difliculties, in that I am able to accomplish the dryin of tobacco and analogous prodnets in aEout ten hours, and at the same eclare the following to be carrying the tobacco or other time preserve all their natural flavors and properties.

In order that my process may be clearly understood, I have illustrated in the accompanying drawings a means by which it may be practiced, and to which reference will be made as the description proceeds, and I have more particularly pointed out my invention in the appended claims.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a drying rooni and apparatus, suitable for the working of my process.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of a portion of the same.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the roof of the air space above the drying room, showing the air exits.

Fig. 4 is a similar view of the ceiling of the dryinp room, showing air outlets, which may be of any desired sha e.

Fig. 5 is a plan view 0 the floor of the drying room, showing apertures for admission of air to the drying room.

b Fig. 6 is a plan view of the plenum cham- Similar numerals indicate identical parts throughout.

1 represents the interior of the drying chamber, the floor 2 of which is provided with tracks 3 upon which run the trucks 4, roduct to be dried, and which are provi ed with the usual racks, etc., common to this sort of device. I

The floor 2 is also provided with a number of perforations 5 which are preferably located between the tracks for the trucks, and are in staggered relation to each other, transversely of the floor. Hinged at 6, to suitable supports orotherwise movably secured thereto, are doors 8 for the ingress and egressof the trucks.

Beneath the floor 2 is a plenum chamber 9 which is rectangular in sha e and may be provided with heating coils, or heating the air in said chamber.

In the form shown in the drawings, Figs. 1 and 6 I may provide the plenum chamber with a supplemental floor 10, which is inclined from the ceiling of the chamber at each end and side thereof down to a central point in the floor, as at 11, at which point there is an openingwto receive a discharge duct 12 from the blower chamber 13.

The blower chamber is provided with heating coils l4 and an air intake 15. fan 16 of any desired construction, is mounted in the chamber and is provided with suitable driving means, as shown. I

To provide for moistening the, air the, plenum chamber, I provide pipes 17 having plurality of moisture spraying nozzles 13, of said nozzles being located near the cent. a; portion of the chamber and adapted to emit a spray against a baffle 19 which drives the spray in opposite directions, as shown. 20 represents an intake pipe for the mo sture, which may be steam if desired, and supplies the same to the pipes 17.

21 represents apertures in the ceiling of the drying room, for the exit of the air, a ter it has absorbed the moisture from the totacco or other vegetable matter in course i shym: and which are fewer in number ....n the intake apertures in the fioor of the drying room.

22 are apertures 10 atedin the roof of the building in which the drying room is located. for the final exit 01 the moisture laden an: into the outside atmosphere, and which n turn are fewer in number than those of the ceiling of the drying room.

The a ertures in the floor, ceiling and roof are rovided with dampers for controiiino the ingress and egress of the air and a damper is also provided in the pipe leading from the blower cnamber to the cnzlm chamber.

In the blower chamber, the heating coil may be converted into a cooling coil, by passing a cooling fluid through the same, in a well known manner, so that cooled air may be fanned into the drying chamber, if desired.

From the above, it is believed the operation of my process will be apparent.

The door or doors 8 of the drying chamber are opened, and trucks provided with racks upon which are hung or spread tobacco leaves or other matter to be dried, as shown at 26, are pushed into-the chamber on the tracks 3.

It will be noted that I provide in my pres ent form of structure for three trucks abreast, each truck running on three tracks, as shown in Fig. 2.

It will also be noted that the airinlet apertures 5 are under each truck, and these trucks act as bafiies, causing the air to pass up through and around the contents of the truck, and come into intimate contact therewith, whereby the dr ing expedited.

The air heated an moistened to the de sired degree in the plenum chamber, passes up through the inlet openin s in'the floor of the drying chamber, absor s the moisture from the tobacco leaves or other vegetable matter bein treated, as above set forth, and passes out through the ceiling apertures 21,

in a single line over each row of trucks, as shown in Fig. 2, into the air space 23, above the ceiling and finally escapes into the atmosphere through the apertures or ventilators 22 in the roof.

It is obvious, that the apertures 22 in the roof being fewer in number than the number of apertures 21 in the ceiling and the latter fewer in number than the apertures in the floor, the movement of the drying air is retarded, and caused to contact most thoroughly with the contents of the tr fiks, undergoing the process.

It is also obvious that the process maybe controlled in its operation, by the use ofthe dampers in the apertures. For example, if the heat for drying or the moisture laden air for conditioning should not be distributed uniformly through the drying room, the apertures near the intake maybe shut entirely, those toward the middle of the room may be opened only half way and those at the ends may be left entirely open. Uniformity of heat and moisture can thus be readily obtained.

If cool air is required in the drying room, the air in the blower chamber may be cooled instead of heated, in any desired manner and the cooled air supplied to the plenum chamber and thence to the drying chamber.

It is obvious that by my arrangement of apparatus and use of the plenum chamber and registers or dampers in the floor and ceiling apertures, hot air may be evenly introduced and distributed into and; through the drying chamber, by means of the fan or 'blower, and after the air has. absorbed the moisture from the material being operated upon, it continues out into the atmosphere through the apertures in the ceiling.

Thus, there is a continual change of air,

and by my process and apparatus, vegetable and other matter may be, dried ata natural temperature and below 100 F.,. whereby, to! bacco, fruit, vegetables or other edibles be ing dried retain all their fine natural flavor and aroma, which are now largely lost in the use of dr ing machines, the air in which is heated to. rom 150 to 250 F.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A process for drying and conditioning tobacco leaves and analogous vegetable matter, which consists in placing said matter in a closed chamber and circulating dry air heated to anatural summer temperatu e of about 100 F. through said chamber, in individually regulated currents through and around said matter, whereby said matter is thoroughly and quickly dried to a brittle condition, and then forcing moistened air in individually regulated currents; through the heating chamber and} in and around said matter.

2. An apparatus for drying tobacco leaves and analogous vegetable matter, which consists in a drying chamber, the floor and ceiling of which are rovided with apertures, a plenum cham r beneath and an air space above said drying chamber, means for heating the air in the lenum chamber, and means for forcing sairl air through the apertures in the floor of the drying chamber, and out through the apertures in the ceiling of the same.

3. An apparatus for drying tobacco leaves and analogous vegetable matter, which consists in a drying chamber, the floor and ceiling of which are provided with apertures, a plenum chamber beneath and an air space above said drying chamber, means for moistening the air in the lenum chamber,

- and means for forcing said moistened air into and through said drying chamber.

4. An apparatus for drying tobacco leaves and analogous vegetable matter, which consists in a drying chamber, the floor and ceiling of which are provided with apertures, the total area of the apertures of the ceiling bein less than the total area of the apertures o the floor, a plenum chamber beneath and an air space above said drying chamber, means for heating and moistening the air in the plenum chamber, means for forcin the air from the plenum chamber througi the apertures in the fioor and ceiling of the dryin chamber, and means located in the sai apertures for regulating the passage of air therethrough.

5. An apparatus for drying tobacco leaves and analogous vegetable matter, which consists in a drying chamber, the floor and ceiling of which are provided with apertures, a plenum chamber beneath and an air space above said drying chamber, means for heating and moistenmg the air in the plenum chamber and means for forcing the air from the plenum chamber through the apertures in the floor and ceiling of the drying chamber, the said plenum chamber being provided with a downwardly inclined floor, the inclined portions converging at a central point.

6. An apparatus as cliamed in claim 5 in which the plenum chamber is provided with pipes having spra nozzles for sprayin moisture into sald c amber.

An apparatus for drying tobacco leaves and analo us vegetable matter, which consists in a drying chamber, the floor and ceiling of which are provided with apertures, a plenum chamber beneath and an air space above said drying chamber, means for moistening the air in the plenum chamber, a blower chamber, a pipe connecting the blower chamber and plenum chamber, means located in the blower chamber for forcing air into the plenum chamber, and thence into the drying chamber, and means for changing the temperature of the air in the blower 66 chamber as desired.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

EMIL K. VIETOR. 

